Book match holder



Dec. 21, 1943. Ar- ARENsoN 2,337,305

BOOK MATCH HOLDER Filed March 8, 1943- Patented Dec. 2l, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BOOK MATCH HOLDER Emmett Arenson, Kansas City, Mo.

Application March 8, 1943, Serial No. 478,437

1 Claim.

type with cover, or a special type without the cover, and one object of the invention is the pro- `vision of a one-piece device of this character which can be manufactured at a minimum of cost and yet afford maximum protection against accidental ignition of the matches when one is detached from the book and ignited.

Frequently a careless user of book matches will neglect to fold the front flap of the book over the match heads, when striking a detached match on the abrasive or ignition surface of the package, with the result that a spark from the ignited match is liable to fly off and ignite the exposed heads of all the other matches and thus cause considerable damage. An object of my invention is the provision of a holder which is proof against such accidents, as the heads of the matches are fully protected and covered by my device until all of the matches in the package are used.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a novel holder adapted to receive a match package without a cover, or one with the front flap of the cover folded over the back of the book, the holder having retaining means which covers the heads and basal portions of the matches and leaves a large area of their middle portions exposed to View, so that the matches can be easily detached as needed and at the same time enables the user to note at a glance when all of the matches have been detached, so that the device may be provided with another book of matches.

A further object of my invention is the provision of novel means for holding the match book in such manner as to leave the ignition surface thereof constantly exposed its entire length so that a match, when being struck can be drawn across the full length of the abrasive surface without liability of being broken by contacting the end of a slot through which only a limited portion of the abrasive surface of some holders is exposed.

A further object is the provision of a holder having guide means for the thumb nail which enables the user to readily locate one of the end matches of the package near the head of the match so that it may be detached at its basal portion from the book without danger of breakage or accidental ignition of the match.

Other objects will hereinafter appear and in order that the invention may be fully understood,

(Cl. 20G- 33) reference will now be had to theaccompanying drawing, in which- Fig. 1 is a perspective View of my device holding a special match package in which the usual cover of the package is dispensed with.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the device containing a match package with the usual cover folded back to give access to the matches, one of which is shown partly detached from the package.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the holder with a special match package being inserted in the holder, some of the matches having been removed.

Fig. 4 is an end elevation of the holdercontaining the special match package.

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of' a match .package provided with the usual paper cover.

Fig. 6 is a detail of the special match package.

As shown by the drawing my book match holder comprises a device which may be stamped from one piece of some stiff material such as sheet metal, or it may comprise cast metal, plastic material, or some kind of flexible material, such, for example, as soft rubber.

In the present instance the holder is shown in the form of a strip of material having a rectangular back plate 2 bent forward and upward at its lower portion to provide a slotless flange 4 and an upwardly facing transverse channel 6. The upper part of the back plate 2 extends forward and downward to provide a guard 8` and a downwardly facing transverse channel I0. The Vertical edges of the back plate 2 have recesses II, for a purpose hereinafter set forth. Y

As shown by Fig. 3, the edge of the middle portion I2 of the guard 8 curves downward a substantial distance and then curves upward at each side I3 closer to the heads of the matches. Thus the edge provides a guide for the thumb nail of the user and forms an important feature of the invention as it enables the user to locate one of the end matches near its head so that the match can be readily detached from the book.

Fig. 5 discloses a perspective view of one of the usual type of match-books adapted to be held in my improved holder and provided with a paper cover having a back I4, the lower end of which is folded forward and upward to form an upturned retaining strip I5, which cooperates with the back It in providing a transverse groove I6 in which are secured the basal portions of the matches I8, the front side of the retaining strip I5 having the usual transverse abrasive surface 20 on which the matches are struck as needed. The upper end portion of the back I4 is folded forward and downward to form a ap 22 adapted v tached or folded over the rear side of the back I4 of the match book, as shown either end of the respectiveL channels 6 and` It),

with the headed portion of the matchesin the` upper channel l where they are protected by the guard 8.

A match at the side edge of the front row of matches is then swung laterally at its headed end, as shown by Fig. 2, and detached from the package, so that the head can be struck on the abrasive surface 20 to ignite the match in the usual manner.

The matches are successively detached from the book as needed until all have been removed. By having an open space between the flange 4 andthe guard 8, the. matches are easily accessible for detachment by the thumb nail and-the user can seeat a glance when the lastmatch Vhas been detached. When this has been accomplished the book cover is removed so that another book can be substituted in the manner aboveV described. The recesses Il inthe vertical sides `of the holder permit the empty cover of the matches to be conveniently grasped and withdrawn from either side of the holder. The guard 8 affords ample protection for the match heads l |against accidental ignition from any sparks that may ily from a match being struck on the abrasive surface 20, and the lower curved edge of the guard constitutes a guide for the thumb nail so that an. end match of the package may be located in the dark and grasped near the head with a match book having a paper cover, the flap 22 is either deby Figs. 2 and 5. The match book is then inserted edgewi'se into gansos preparatory to detaching the match from the package.

As my holder provides ample protection for the matches the paper cover can be dispensed with and a special match package like that shown by Figs. 1, 3, 4 and 6, can be used, thereby saving the expense of providing the packages with covers. In other respects the special match package is similar to the one above described, as is 10 evident bycorresponding reference numerals with exponents a.

From the foregoing description, taken in con- `nection with the drawing, it is apparent that I have produced a simple, inexpensive match hold- V er possessing the advantages above pointed out and while I have shown the preferred form of my invention I reserve all rights to such changes and :modifications thereof as properly fall within the scope of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I Yclaim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: A one-piece match package holder comprising aback plate having an upturned slotless flange at its lower end and a downturned guard at its upper end providing lower and upper channels for reception of the basal and head portions respectively, of a match package which 'may be slid into either of the open ends of the channels and is provided at its lower portion with a transverse abrasive surface projecting above the upper margin of the lower ange to permit the head 4of a match to be drawn across the entire length of theabrasive surface without hindrance from lsaid lowerl flange, said flange and guard being spaced apart to permit access to the matches and said guard being proportioned to fully cover the match heads, the lower margin of the guard curving downward at its middle portion and then upwardly at each side to constitute a guide for di- 40 'resting the thumb-nail of the user to the upper portion of a match at either side of the package preparatory to extracting the match, the back lplate of the holdervhaving a marginal recess at each-side to enable the cover of anrempty package to be grasped and` removed from either side of the-holder.

EMNIETI' ARENSON. 

